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Cherry Pop has just continued its reissue series celebrating U.K. outfit Matt Bianco with a 3-CD deluxe edition of 1988’s Indigo.  This release follows similarly lavish expansions for the jazz/pop/dance/Latin band’s debut Whose Side Are You On in 2016 and eponymous sophomore album in 2017.

By the time of Indigo, Matt Bianco was down to just two members.  Vocalist Basia and keyboardist Danny White had both left the group after the first album (the duo would collaborate on every Basia solo album afterward); bassist Kito Poncioni had only made it through one B-side, leaving even before Whose Side.  With the departures of Basia and White, Mark Reilly enlisted multi-instrumentalist Mark Fisher, who’d played keyboards for Wham!, to become his principal creative partner in the band. Vocalist Jenni Fisher was recruited, too, though she left the band before the release of Matt Bianco.  For Indigo, Reilly and Mark Fisher were joined by hitmaking producer Emilio Estefan, who accentuated the duo’s already prevalent love of Latin sounds.  (Reilly had already assumed the Latin persona of “Matt Bianco” – the name inspired by ’60s spy culture – for album covers and in videos.)

The partnership with Estefan took wing at Miami’s Criteria Studios but only survived for two tracks.  The infectious “Don’t Blame It on That Girl” was later remixed and overdubbed by Reilly and Fisher while “Good Times” was completely re-recorded.  (The Estefan-helmed Miami version was included on original CDs as a bonus track, and is reprised here.)  The brief teaming was fortuitous, though, as the brassy “Don’t Blame It” became a No. 10 Dance hit in the United States and a No. 11 Pop success in the United Kingdom.  (Trivia: future star Jon Secada and The Three Degrees’ Sheila Ferguson were among the backing vocalists.)

“Don’t Blame It on That Girl” became a double-sided U.K. hit with the insistent, more overtly club-oriented “Wap Bam Boogie,” produced by Fisher and Reilly and featuring rapper Ambassador.  Like much of Indigo, it was mixed by Phil Harding of the PWL production company.  The influence of Harding and his PWL associates was felt throughout the LP, including on the follow-up singles “Good Times” and a re-recording of album track “Nervous.”  (The latter boasted a new Latin remix of “Wap Bam Boogie” on its flipside.)  The album’s fourth single, the breezy and attractive “Say It’s Not Too Late,” was a throwback to Matt Bianco’s sophistipop days.

Indigo may have been a move away from the group’s jazz-influenced roots with its club rhythms and increasing reliance on synth-driven sounds, but It earned the duo a great many new fans and made it to No. 23 in the U.K., the band’s best placement on the chart.  Cherry Pop’s deluxe edition, curated by producer Vinny Vero and newly remastered by Andy Pearce, offers an embarrassment of riches related to the LP: a staggering 37 B-sides, remixes, and alternate versions – nine of which are new to CD, and twelve of which are completely unreleased until now.  The 24-page full-color booklet is equally lavish and detail-oriented, with essays by Bill Pitzonka and Phil Harding, complete lyrics, a discography pertaining to the album and singles, and full credits.  It’s all housed in a digipak, designed in period style by Jos Leene.

The 3-CD expansion of Matt Bianco’s Indigo is available now at the links below!

Matt Bianco, Indigo: Deluxe Edition (WEA (U.K.) WX 181/Atlantic (U.S.) 81268-1, 1988 – reissued Cherry Pop WCRPOPT189, 2018) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1 (Tracks 1-10 Original Album, Tracks 11-17 Single Versions and B-Sides)

1. Don’t Blame It on That Girl
2. Nervous
3. Slide
4. Say It’s Not Too Late
5. Wap Bam Boogie
6. Good Times
7. R&B
8. Hanging On
9. Jack of Clubs
10. Indigo
11. Wap Bam Boogie (7″ Edit) (WEA YZ581CD, 1990)
12. Good Times (New Version) (WEA YZ 302, 1988)
13. Tumbao (Edited Version) (*) (WEA YZ 302, 1988)
14. Nervous (Re-Recorded Version) (WEA YZ 328, 1989)
15. Say It’s Not Too Late (7″ Version) (WEA YZ 388, 1989)
16. R&B (Brad Davis 7″ Mix) (+)
17. Poolside (*) (WEA YZ 328TE, 1989)

CD 2: Additional Recordings, Remixes and Alternate Versions

1. Fire in the Blood (7″ Version) (WEA YZ 532, 1990)
2. We’ve Got the Mood (Matt’s Mood ’90) (7″ Version) (*) (WEA YZ 532, 1990)
3. Don’t Blame It on That Girl (Extended Mix) (WEA YZ 188T, 1988)
4. Wap Bam Boogie (Latin Remix) (WEA YZ 551CD, 1990)
5. Good Times (New Long Version) (*) (WEA YZ 302T, 1988)
6. Tumbao (Long Version) (WEA YZ 302T, 1988)
7. Nervous (Extended Re-Recorded Version) (*) (WEA YZ 9T, 1989)
8. R&B (Bastone 12″ Mix) (+)
9. Don’t Blame It on That Girl (Rare Groove Mix) (*) (WEA YZ 188TX, 1988)
10. Good Times (Miami Mix) (WEA (U.K.) WX 181/Atlantic (U.S.) 81268-1, 1988)
11. Nervous (Extended U.S. Mix) (+)
12. Hanging On (Extended Version) (+)
13. Indigo (Alternate Version) (+)
14. R&B (Bastone Dub) (+)

CD 3: More Remixes and Alternate Versions

1. Don’t Blame It on That Girl (Rare Groove Mix Edit) (Source TBD)
2. Wap Bam Boogie (The Sok It to Me Mix) (WEA YZ 551T, 1990)
3. Nervous (Flute Version) (Source TBD)
4. R&B (Brad Davis 12″ Mix) (+)
5. Fire in the Blood (Caliente) (Club Mix) (WEA YZ 532T, 1990)
6. We’ve Got the Mood (Matt’s Mood ’90) (12″ Version) (WEA YZ 532T, 1990)
7. Don’t Blame It on That Girl (Rare Groove Sax Version) (*) (WEA YZ 188TX, 1988)
8. Wap Bam Boogie (Alternate 7″ Edit) (*) (Source TBD)
9. Nervous (Fish Mix) (+)
10. R&B (Bastone 7″ Mix) (+)
11. Say It’s Not Too Late (Edit) (+)
12. Don’t Blame It on That Girl (Gail “Sky” King Edit of 12″ Mix) (+)
13. Wap Bam Boogie (Sok It to Me Mix Edit) (*) (WEA YZ 551CD, 1990)
14. Nervous (U.S. Mix) (WEA YZ 532CD, 1990)
15. Fire in the Blood (12″ Version) (WEA YZ 532T, 1990)
16. Slide (Instrumental) (+)

(*) previously unreleased on CD
(+) previously unreleased